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The Starry Night Was My Blanket

My path here was roundabout, here being a place with space to roam and explore within a context of belonging. Here I’ve come to know something I’d not known before: trust. Sometimes it feels foreign, and I retreat back to my native high alertness.

I had lived on a ranch where I had a job to do: tending the livestock. I took my job seriously and performed it with singular focus, but the time came when the cattle were moved and the people left. I ran after their truck, sure there had been some mistake, until I could run no longer. I returned to the empty place; knowing no other place else since puppyhood, I stayed.

There was a trickle of water at the edge of the property from which I drank. I passed my days foraging for food. The starry night was my blanket, the warm sun my companion, the rain my welcome, thirst-quenching friend. And so I passed my time.

One day I saw a car coming from a distance, a cloud of dust trailing behind it. People I didn’t know emerged from the car. It was the woman who saw me first, pointing me out to the others then calling to me. I approached her cautiously.

She stooped down, holding her hand out to me. I looked into her eyes then walked to her. She touched my forehead, my ears, my neck and spoke to me quietly. I didn’t understand her words, but I understood her. She placed her hand on my spiny back, each finger resting in an indent between my ribs.

They took me to their house. I hung behind as we walked in, as I’d never before been inside a house. A cat at the far side of the room arched his back and widened his eyes. I looked toward the woman for reassurance, who nodded. I moved slowly toward the cat, my head hung low to show respect. I reached my neck forward and touched his nose with my nose. The cat sat down and began bathing his paw. I went back and stood beside the woman, glancing up to her to make sure I’d done the right thing. She placed her hand gently on my head. I closed my eyes.

These days, there is a cedar-smelling bed near the woodstove and bowls of fresh food and water for me, always. Sometimes I walk to the far edge of the property and sit on the bluff. From there I gaze out toward the place I used to live and back toward the place I now call home. I almost always lay my head on my paws and, under the big sky, doze. Later, I rise, shake myself off, and follow the familiar path home. There, I am greeted with love, always.

“Saving just one animal won’t change the world…but the world will change for that one animal.” Author unknown

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Action Ideas

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Please don't convince yourself that someone else will help a stray or that the animal will find its way home. Stop and help. If needed, call the police or local shelter for assistance.
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• The Humane League’s mission has been to save the lives of as many animals as possible and to reduce as much animal cruelty as they can: thehumaneleague.com/donate/
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Donate your car to HSUS, get a tax write-off, they pick it up for free, you feel good ... onecarhelpshumane
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Many rural shelters are overcrowded and have a low adoption rate. For $25 you can transport a dog to an adoption site in the Northeast:
theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/store/ars/item/53356/?adId=138518&placementId=381055&origin
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• List of cruelty-free product manufacturers: leapingbunny.org.images/globalguide.pdf
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Help reunite a dog and his soldier: bit.ly/1bcGkv3
•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• To find your local shelter: theshelterpetproject.org/shelters

“We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals.” Immanuel Kant

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“The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. – Mahatma Ghandhi

Things of Interest

All 50 States Now Have Felony Animal Cruelty Provisions.Thank you, Animal Legal Defense Fund, for your tireless efforts.
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Looking to adopt a particular breed of dog? MANY HUMANE SOCIETIES OFFER BREED-SPECIFIC REQUEST REGISTRATION. Chester County SPCA in PA does: ccspca.org/adopt-a-pet/matchmaker-list
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50% of proceeds from this book go to animal rescue: http://swamizoe.blogspot.com/p/my-book-daily-yoga-for-happy-and.html
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Games.co.za/cats offers online cat games. . . a portion
of this South African company's proceeds fund katuitdegracht.nl (Cat out of the Canal)--a charity that saves cats from drowning in waterways and canals in the Netherlands.